Insatiable
by Carroline17
Summary: Elena Gilbert has everything a woman could possibly wish for: a loving boyfriend, a glamorous job and caring friends and family. But she feels trapped in the constricting high-class life that she leads next to Stefan. When Stefan's rebellious brother, Damon, returns to New York, Elena is inexplicably drawn to him and soon finds herself slowly coming back to life...
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's note: A very warm welcome to all of my readers to my new story entitled "Inastiable" after Darren Hayes' song. This is my first attempt at writing an M-rated story so bear with me, guys! I will try to make it as good as I possibly can. Hope you enjoy chapter 1 entitled after Natalie Imbruglia's song "Torn". _**

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**Chapter 1 - Torn**

"As the CEO of JP Morgan and Chase, I am glad to have all of you here tonight, dear guests. Your hard work and loyalty to the company is what makes it stay one of the strongest banks in the world."

Believe it or not, there I was... On the Majesty Cornucopia yacht at the annual fabulous gala hosted by the bank JP Morgan and Chase. This year, a thousand of the most important employees in the New York branch were invited to attend this event. I remember for how long all the wives, fiances and girlfriends had waited for this event – just another night to celebrate luxury and snobbery. As if such a world was even that special to begin with…

I would hate to be misunderstood by you gentle and kind people. To clear things out, I do not have any prejudice whatsoever against the rich and the vain people that are on this boat tonight. I actually deal with such people every day of my life. Which is why I have developed such a powerful opinion of my own. Far be it for me to consider myself as being better than them. God is witness that I have my own sins to worry about. But I was at least happy and proud that I had something that these people would never possess – common sense.

I apologize, you must think I am extremely rude. For those of you who don't know me yet, my name is Elena Gilbert. And I know what you must be thinking… and I am anything but a banker. No, far from that... In earnest, I would simply kill myself if I had to sit in front of a computer and worry about accounts, interest rates and other similar things. Not that I have anything against bankers – I think they are wonderful intelligent creatures – maybe a bit boring for my own taste though. Especially since I have to listen to stories about banks day after day… And the reason for all of my banking-related torture can be summed up into one big name: Giuseppe Salvatore.

"And it isn't simply another yearly gala at our company. This year I am proud to announce that my son – Stefan here –" and with that Giuseppe Salvatore put one hand around my boyfriend's shoulders "is about to join the Executive board of the New York branch and help us maintain our path in order to achieve our ultimate goal: to beat our eternal opponent – the Bank of America Corporation _yet again_!"

With that a thunder of applause swept across the room, making my skin turn to goose bumps. Their corporate way of life made me nauseous.

I couldn't help but cringe at hearing Giuseppe's words. I knew Stefan hadn't wanted to do this to begin with. It is such a long story that I don't even know where to begin...

I met Stefan on the first day of senior year in high-school. What I am about to tell you might sound incredibly corny, but it was love at first sight...for real. And after our third date I knew for sure that I deeply loved him. Because Stefan was everything I had ever dreamed of – he was sweet, caring, considerate and such a kind person. He truly loved me despite all of our differences.

To make things clear, Stefan came from an extremely rich family, as you have probably figured out already. But it wasn't that his father was rich that was the problem. It was that his father was manipulative and controlling beyond normal limits of parental manipulation. Stefan had always wanted to become a doctor – it was a cause he believed in; a cause he would have excelled in. But his father needed him to run his company later when he would retire. And since Stefan was the only family that Giuseppe actually had, of course, he had to give up his dream so that his father would be happy.

So he graduated two consecutive degrees: Investment Banking, and Business Magna Cum Laude. Whilst I graduated Visual arts, more exactly Photography and Painting… Which is equivalent to zero in the investment banking field. Despite such divergent routes, Stefan and I never gave up on each other. But as he slipped further into the life that his father was preparing for him, he pulled me after him and so from a middle-class girl, I ended up being sucked into the high society. Emphasis on the expression "sucked into". I took one look at the hall filled with fancy-dressed people surrounding me. 70-year olds accompanied by 20-year old bimbos…and smug assholes who thought they were better than ordinary people just because they had money. And I felt only one emotion – utter disgust.

You might wonder why I even attended the event tonight if I was so against this way of life. I didn't like it but if I wanted to be with Stefan I had to put up with all this. And I loved him enough to survive living in such a world.

But, as much as I hate to admit it, somewhere along the way Stefan changed. And I am not talking about an imaginary change that had just happened in my head – I am talking about life-altering change of character. . The pressure that his father had put on him finally got to Stefan about one year ago and he slowly started losing it. The more he worked for his dad, the more he wanted to be better and bring in more investors, and more money to the bank. The fact that he had turned into a workaholic was the least of our problems. As the years passed by, Stefan slowly became more impatient, stubborn and angry. Which eventually started taking its toll on our relationship. Of course I never stopped loving him. As you can probably tell by my presence at tonight's gala…

"But this is not the only reason why tonight is so special. Because Stefan has informed me of a particularly pleasant event. Something that has brought me greater joy than anything else lately." I suddenly started to listen much more carefully.

"Many years ago, he encountered a girl who stole his heart, you see... And ever since they have been _inseparable_."

I cringed at hearing Giuseppe's words. A bad feeling crept into my heart and wouldn't go away. I was afraid of what he might say next. With Giuseppe it was always secrets and hidden games. I had learned that a long time ago.

"I am immensely happy that my son has found such a special person with whom he wants to spend the rest of his life with." I felt my cheeks catching fire. All of a sudden I could see people catching their breaths and turning around to look at me and I suddenly felt conscious as I was standing right next to the handrails. So I hadn't imagined it. He had actually uttered those words...

"Needless to say, I would like to wish her an official welcome in our company and our family. She is truly a girl of gold…" Giuseppe added in such a sweet but fake tone that I felt like puking. I desperately looked at Stefan hoping that he would stop this nonsense. That he would just snatch the microphone out of his father's grasp and take back all of those silly words. But there he stood next to his father – obedient as a puppy – as he always was next to him.

"So, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, please give a warm welcome to the future Mrs. Elena Salvatore!"

A roar of applause erupted in the hall and reverberated through every atom in the room, including my skin. As Giuseppe beckoned me to come down the stairs I felt my feet sinking in the floor, glued to it and screaming for help. I gripped the handrail so that I wouldn't fall.

They say that the night of your engagement should be special – one of the most memorable nights in your life. Well, I couldn't complain about that. Memorable it was. Memorable it would forever be for every single person in New York city. Everybody apart from me… Because I had just witnessed myself getting engaged in front of the JP Morgan employees and the New York paparazzi who were now taking hundreds of photos of me.

I remembered I had to smile so I put on my best grin and slowly made my way towards the railing. As I went down the stairs reality hit me straight in the face. And I couldn't help but wonder just how trapped I was... How I would never escape to see the light of day ever again.

_Just keep smiling…_

I started heavily panting, trying to conceal it from everybody, especially Stefan. I didn't want to anger him – not tonight. Not when it was his time to shine so bright. I could never forgive myself if I did that.

_Just smile and everything will be ok…_

I took a good hold of my blue lace dress – I needed to take control of something, and this was the only thing I _could _control right now: not falling. Not tonight.

As I arrived in the spotlight, the applause intensified even more and I was momentarily blinded by the lights that were shining on all three of us. After all these years I still hadn't become accustomed to this glamorous life.

Stefan happily greeted me by graciously getting down on one knee. To that gesture, half the people in the room held their breaths, and the other drunken half started cheering.

_God, this is not happening_… I felt utterly humiliated.

"Elena" He said getting a little velvet box out of his pocket. To that, the entire hall went quiet in order to hear.

_How can you do this to me Stefan?_

"My only desire is to spend every single day of our lives together. Because I love you more than I can put it into words."

I felt like I could hit him in the face right then and there. But I just kept my happy and emotional façade. On the inside I was boiling.

"Will you marry me?" He asked me and at the same time opened the box to reveal the shiniest engagement ring that I had ever seen in my life. I felt my breath get caught in my throat as I recognized the ring from a recent jewelry magazine.

No! It couldn't be… It was the 9 carat diamond engagement ring designed by DeBeers. The ring that was worth 2 million dollars. I thought I was imagining it but as I looked into Stefan's eyes I knew it was for real. The Salvatores never went cheap for anything. It was one of their mottos in life. I could say the same thing about the dress I was wearing tonight… A dress just like princess Katherine had recently worn.

As Stefan's expression twitched for just a millisecond I realized it was my cue to finally answer. Everybody was waiting - of course they were...

And in front of the entire world I heard myself saying "Yes." A shaky, unsure yes that nobody apart from Stefan and the people closest to us probably heard. And then the entire hall applauded our engagement – whilst Stefan put the jewel on my finger and victoriously kissed me. God, it just felt like such a big fat spectacle. I felt like I was on display. So that the entire world could see that I was his property. Which I guess I now was.

After my eyes finally adjusted to the bright lights, I could see so many familiar faces surrounding the stage. Caroline and Bonnie were standing next to each other smiling towards me with admiration and a bit of friendly envy. My mum together with aunt Jenna were on the opposite side of the room crying with happiness. I knew for sure how much my mum had wished for this day to come... And Stefan was of course proud of his most precious asset...

And me? As I kept smiling for the photographers and the 1500 people present tonight I couldn't help but feel that I should have been happy…

I had everything that I could have ever wanted. A loving fiancé, a glamorous job and caring friends and family…

I had no reason to be unhappy.

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**_As always, please leave reviews and comments so that I know where I am with the quality of the story. Until next time! :)_**


	2. Chapter 2

**_Author's note: Ok, guys, I've just beaten my personal record i.e. have updated in just two days. Lack of inspiration in my other story Give me love but loads of inspiration for this current story. Thank you very much for your encouraging reviews and I do appreciate your honesty when it comes to what you liked/ didn't like about my story. I really hope you enjoy this second chapter. I've never written M-rated stories so any advice in that department would be very much appreciated. Have fun reading this! The chapter's title is inspired from Lifehouse's song "It is what it is". _**

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Chapter 2 – It is what it is

ELENA's POV

"Oh my God!" Caroline and Bonnie squeaked as they ran towards me right after the paparazzi stopped taking photos of me and Stefan.

My mum together with aunt Jenna came to congratulate me as well and when four women basically made a circle around me, Stefan simply had to let go of my hand and leave us to celebrate just like only girls do. It pained me having to let go of his hand – I wish I could have just had these few special moments with him. No matter how it had happened, he had just asked me to marry him. And I still hadn't processed the whole event. After all, it had happened way too fast.

"Look at the size of that ring!" Bonnie exclaimed in a voice that resembled a woman having an orgasm.

"I could just kill you right now – it's the most beautiful engagement ring ever!" Caroline added.

I laughed as I witnessed their reactions – they were both single so such an event happening to me meant a whole lot for my best friends. They were kind of living every single romantic event in my life as if it were their own as well.

"It is, isn't it?" I replied as I caught a better look of the ring. It was indeed gorgeous.

"Elena…" My mum said as she came and hugged me so tightly.

"I am so happy for you, honey. You fully deserve this. To be honest, I'm surprised he didn't propose earlier." She said and looked me in the eyes with a caring expression.

"Thank you, mum." I said and involuntarily a tear came down my cheek. I had been waiting for this for a while.

"Your dad would have been so proud of you…" She said and started weeping as well.

"Oh, mum, don't cry…"

"They're just tears of joy, sweetie." Mum had been waiting for this moment longer than I had.

"You know what Miranda is like, Elena." My aunt Jenna replied and sneaked between my mother and me to give me a hug as well.

"Congratulations dear! I wish you a lifetime of happiness together." She said caressing my cheek.

"Thank you so much, aunt Jenna."

"Look at you, all grown up. When did the years go by?" It seemed that my mum was thinking the same as she kept looking at me from head to toe, certainly admiring my new possession. To be fair, I wouldn't have been here had it not been for my mother. She had made this all possible.

"You do realize that you should be celebrating with Stefan, right Elena?" Caroline asked in such a dirty manner that my ears turned red – especially because my mum and aunt were both there.

"Caroline!" I squeaked in response and pointed towards my mum and aunt. My mum swooped in to save Caroline's life just in time.

"It's ok, Elena. We know what it's like to be young…"

"…and horny." Jenna added making me put a hand in front of my face to cover my ever-growing blush.

"I officially do not know you people. Any of you..." I said and they all started laughing.

"But seriously, Elena, you should go and spend time with Stefan… It's a special moment for both of you." Bonnie said encouraging me to go after him.

I nodded and turned around to find him. Somewhere in the crowd I could see him heavily laughing with his mates from work. He seemed so happy that I almost forgave him for the stunt he had pulled tonight. Almost…

"Please excuse me." I said and slowly made my way towards Stefan. I was getting excited at the prospect of stealing him for a bit from this whole crowd. I kind of sneaked up on him and just hugged him from the back. He turned around and his grin became even bigger.

"Boo." I said and felt like a child.

"Booooo…" He replied, hugged and then kissed me – a kiss that all of a sudden made me weak in the knees. Loads of thoughts rushed into my mind and I only wanted one thing – to sneak out with him and have a few minutes just on our own.

But before I could ask him anything he encircled my waist and turned me around so that I was now facing his mates.

"Look at her, lads." He said to all of them – Klaus, Kol, Lexi and my brother Jeremy. "Isn't she the most beautiful woman you have ever seen?"

"I completely agree, mate." Klaus replied and held his glass up high as an unofficial toast for us both.

"Yeah, same here. I heard it runs in the Gilbert family." Jeremy replied and everybody started laughing, including me.

"You've always been quite modest, little Gilbert." Kol replied and jokingly punched Jeremy in the ribs.

"I'll pay you back for that, Mikaelson."

"Oh just pipe it down already. It's Stefan and Elena's night – not yours. So stop fooling around, you bunch of freaks…" The gorgeous-looking Lexi replied in a very manly fashion. To be honest, had she not been a bit manly, I probably wouldn't have agreed with how much time Stefan spent with her. But I was no fool – I knew they had been best friends since they could walk.

"Not to be rude or anything, guys, but I was actually about to steal Stefan for a bit. Would that be ok with you all?"

"Oh, no, why are you ruining our fun, Elena?" Klaus exclaimed in such a dramatic fashion. His British accent made it all even funnier.

"Yeah, we were gonna get Stefan mind-numbingly drunk tonight. You know, to prepare him for married life and all that." Jeremy replied and everybody burst into laughter. I however raised my eyebrows quite knowingly.

"Not gonna happen. Not tonight." I firmly replied and they all realized I was serious about it.

"Honey…" Stefan said. "We're just goofing around. We haven't met like this in ages. I'll come join you later, is that alright?" My mood reversed to -30 degrees Celsius in about two seconds after I heard Stefan saying that.

"But I wanted to…talk to you and…" I left the sentence unfinished because it was just normal for us to be together right now.

"We will, I promise you." He said and briefly kissed me. "But I just wanted to spend some time with the guys for now. You understand, right? I mean, you must be dying to talk to your girls about the wedding and all, I imagine.."

I realized everybody was staring at us. My natural reaction would have been to be completely freak out about it. But I couldn't make a scene – not here, not in front of our friends and my brother. It just wasn't right. I felt my voice trembling when I said.

"Right…" I almost started crying at how frustrated I felt.

"Well, I'll leave you guys to chat. I'll see you later." I couldn't leave faster. The only thing that was making me so damn slow were my 5-inch heels. I struggled for air as I passed people in my way to the ladies room.

The only thing I wanted was to find an empty toilet and lock myself in there until the whole evening was over. I felt humiliated, embarrassed, treated like a trophy-girlfriend. Pardon me, a trophy-fiance …

Before I could enter the ladies' room I heard Rebekah Michaelson's voice coming from the bathroom. I stopped in my tracks as I caught a glimpse of what she was saying.

"Can you believe that he asked her to marry him?" I could immediately tell she was gossiping about me.

"Well it was about time if you ask me." April Young – the only friend that that blonde-haired bitch had - answered in a nice manner. "I mean it's been six years for the love of God. He left her waiting long enough." Oh my God... I know my mum had said that, but did _everybody_ think that?

"I don't know what in the world he's thinking. You can tell by just glancing towards her what a middle-class money-grabbing wanna-be she really is." I felt my knees getting weak. I mean, don't get me wrong, I wasn't on good terms with Rebekah Michealson. I could tell that she couldn't stand me although she was always pretending to be my friend. But to actually hear those words coming out of her mouth was denigrating to no end. Especially since she was Stefan's ex-girlfriend.

"Oh, Rebekah…don't say that."

"April – come on! Have you even seen her dress? I mean who does she think she is – Kate Middleton? So tacky…" My dress was tacky? Just because someone else had worn the same model before me? But who was I kidding? Rebekah always wore the classiest and most expensive dresses that designers could make.

"Well I think she looks beautiful. Her and Stefan look good together." April said defending me. I felt so good towards her. But I couldn't shake Rebekah's words.

"Please…" The blonde bitch replied in an annoyed fashion. "I give it six months until Stefan realizes what a huge mistake he's making. And I'm telling you – he'll be the one calling the wedding off when he realizes just how out of his league she is."

I felt I could just go in there and slap her tiny brains out of her tiny head. It took every ounce of restrain to keep myself from doing that. Instead I surrendered to the fact that I would never be accepted by most people in Stefan's circle. And I slowly made my way to the stairs, using every ounce of energy left to go up each and every step until I reached the deck of the gigantic yacht.

Peace and quiet.

That's what I felt as I reached the deck. There was no one around. Absolutely nobody. I found myself slowly walking towards the stern.

The last thing I wanted was to think about my engagement and what I'd experienced tonight. But it involuntarily crept up into my mind and I just couldn't shake it.

What was I doing? Why wasn't I inside with Stefan right now, kissing him, hugging him, enjoying his company?

_I'll tell you why, Elena_… my alter ego replied. _Because he's acting like a pretentious dick._

No he isn't, he just wanted to make it special.

_You call proposing in front of 1500 people special? And after his dad announced the whole thing? You've got to be kidding me._

Well he did make it special. He invited Bonnie, my mum and aunt to witness it. He wanted everybody that I care about to be there with us.

_Yeah, but who cares about them if **he** doesn't want to be with you right now?_

My bitchy alter ego finally got to me. Stefan should have wanted to spend these moments with me – not with his work buddies. Provided he never met up with them out of work – he was a workaholic. But I was his girlfriend, I deserved at least that.

And then hearing Rebekah saying those mean words did not help one bit – although I knew not to care what she thought or said. She was a complete and utter bitch. But it still got to me. I knew I was way out of Stefan's league. I knew I was nothing compared to her or other women. I knew I was a phony. Because I wasn't rich like them...

I felt so lonely and pathetic that I just wanted to jump in the water and swim to shore. Just so that I could get away from it all…

"Are you ok?" A low manly voice asked and I suddenly turned around realizing I wasn't alone anymore.

A tall handsome blue-eyed man dressed in a very elegant suit was standing a few metres away from me, holding a cigarette in his right hand. I panicked as I had never before seen him – neither at the company, nor in Stefan's circles of friends. He seemed to acknowledge my feelings as he held his hands up in defense.

"I'm sorry. I… didn't mean to scare you." He replied in a polite and kind way. I examined him for a few seconds and my shoulders instantly relaxed as I realized he wasn't a stalker or something like that. He had a very distinguished manner – he was clearly a few years older than me and more mature. I decided he could be trusted.

"No, I'm sorry. I… I thought you were some crazy person." I replied and genuinely grinned. He flashed his whole set of perfect teeth at me and replied.

"Do you get a lot of crazy people around?"

"Once in a while. It happens when you're going out with Stefan Salvatore." I said and couldn't believe I had just said that. He knowingly nodded though and smiled.

"Congratulations for tonight. That is one big rock." He said and pointed to my finger, quickly drawing on his cigarette.

"Thank you." I politely said but stopped right there.

"You don't seem too excited." He said in a melancholic voice and I could tell he was being both sympathetic and curious.

"I don't feel like talking about it." I told the tall handsome stranger as I turned around and grabbed the handrail that was surrounding the yacht. I could hear him making his way towards me and all of a sudden he was one meter to my right, leaning against the handrail and admiring the Manhattan skyline.

"It's fine with me. I don't feel like talking either." As strange as I found this situation, the man didn't seem like a lunatic. Neither was he annoying me. I actually found him…mysterious and intriguing.

"Who are you?" I found myself asking.

"My name is Damon. It's nice to meet you, Elena." He said and the name didn't ring a bell.

"Same here… You must be one of Stefan's old school friends." I replied assuming the most logical explanation.

"Oh, Stefan and me go a long way back." He replied nodding. "I haven't talked to him in ages... I've recently moved back to New York and couldn't wait to see him." That was sweet...

"I'm sure he'll be happy to see you again." I genuinely answered. He briefly nodded and kept staring at the beautifully lit New York skyline.

"I don't think I'm gonna bother him tonight. He deserves to spend it with his fiancé." He said and put the cigarette to his lips again. I momentarily caught a glimpse of his beautifully shaped lips but quickly lifted my gaze back to his eyes. He seemed to be lost in deep thoughts.

"Yeah, he should spend it with his fiancé, shouldn't he?" I felt myself saying in an empty voice. If I had learned one thing from Stefan and his father it was that tears made everyone a weak person. So I refrained from weeping. Just like the Salvatores would. After all, I would soon be Mrs. Salvatore. I cringed at the thought of it.

"Here." Damon all of a sudden said. I turned around and saw that he was handing me his cigarette. Seeing my puzzled expression he explained.

"You seem like you really need it." I looked into his eyes and saw a combination of worry and pity.

"Thanks…but I don't smoke." He got the message and quickly withdrew his hand.

"So you're one of _those_ people…" He jokingly said as if I was against his whole way of life.

"I have to be. I'm volunteering for the American Lung Association."I said and I couldn't believe how proud I was of that. God, I was so silly.

"Wow… that sounds…" He paused and then asked "What is that?!" making me instantly laugh.

"An organization that raises awareness about lung diseases. And the leading diseases that can be prevented in the US are caused by smoking."

"It can't be." He sarcastically said looking at his cigarette.

"It's true. Smoking causes 393,000 deaths every year." He looked at me in a weird manner.

"The facts aren't too encouraging, I must stay… So why are you telling me this?"

"Because I don't want you to die because of your bad habits." This made him grin. He had a lovely crooked smile - the one you see in a TV commercial.

"So you're trying to spare me from a quick and painful death..." He said throwing the cigarette straight into the water.

"I guess you could put it like that." I replied feeling a bit flirtatious.

"But what do _you_ think of smoking?" He said as if he was testing me.

"I think it's a dirty disgusting habit." His expression instantly changed.

"Ouch. You have quite strong opinions, don't you, Elena?" He asked laughing it off. I smiled in response.

"It's just who I am…" He paused and suddenly took off his jacket and put it on my shoulders. I stared at him in a perplexed manner. He felt the need to explain.

"You seemed to be shivering." I hadn't even said a thing and yet he had noticed something as insignificant as that. I was stunned – in a good way of course.

"Thank you very much." I politely replied feeling extremely grateful – and warm. As I took note of Damon's shirt, I couldn't help but notice what broad manly shoulders and muscular biceps he had. I felt ashamed as I silently compared him to Stefan.

"It's nothing." He said and kept on admiring the skyline.

"You must fit in perfectly with Stefan's circle of Ivy-League friends." I turned to stare him in the eyes. I didn't know where that had come from.

"I can tell why he's chosen you to be his wife." He said lighting up another cigarette. He was definitely confusing me a lot.

"What do you mean by that, Damon?"

"I mean to say that you fit in extremely well with the crowd back there." He said pointing towards the great hall on the yacht. There was something in his attitude that made me realize he disapproved of that crowd.

"Is that… an insult?" I asked in confusion. He raised his eyebrows and then replied.

"Actually, Elena, it is a compliment of the highest order. You have both beauty and intelligence. It pleases the high class society very much to have a person like you among them."Although I was flattered by his kind words, I literally huffed.

"I don't fit in at all… I'm just struggling to." He seemed very surprised by my words.

"Well, you're doing much better than me then. It took _me_ an entire lifetime to accept being part of this world." It was my turn to be surprised.

"How do you know Stefan again...?" I asked him out of the blue.

"We kind of grew up together. We were the best of friends." Vague, but I could tell he wasn't lying.

"You should go say hi. He'll be excited to see you." I replied admiring the night sky. It was filled with millions of stars.

"I don't think he would be that excited." He reluctantly replied.

"Why do you say that?" I asked sensing there was something wrong with this whole story.

"Because we had a big fight years ago and since then we never spoke to each other again." He simply said surprising me yet again.

"You came here to patch things up with him." I replied in a stunned voice.

"Yeah, sort of…" He said and smiled.

"You know... He's going to forgive you, Damon." I said and pulled his suit tighter around me. Although it was an August night, it was pretty cold out here. He grinned hearing my words.

"Hmm. Am I that obvious?"

"Sort of…" I mysteriously replied.

"You have so much faith in him." Damon said and I could read admiration in his stare.

"I do. Because he's a good man." I firmly said. In spite of all of his faults...

"He's really lucky to have you." All of a sudden he stared into my eyes and for a second I found myself getting lost in his gorgeous blue eyes.

"I'd better go back in." I said realizing that this whole thing was slightly inappropriate. I mean, I had just gotten engaged. I shouldn't have been alone with this stranger on the deck. My mother would flip if she saw me here.

"Here you go. Again, thank you." I told Damon as I handed him his suit.

"It was nice to meet you, Damon." I said and started walking back to the hall. Out of the blue I heard Damon asking:

"Can I ask you one favor?" I turned around and saw how uncomfortable he seemed.

"What kind of favor?" I wearily asked.

"Can you please not tell Stefan that we met? I'd really like to…talk to him first." He said seeming a bit embarrassed about the whole thing. I nodded understanding his predicament.

"Of course." He nodded back and pursed his lips stopping himself from saying whatever he was planning to say.

"It was a pleasure meeting you too, Elena." His gentleman-like reply made me smile. He had a way about him that was simply unique.

I turned around and made my way back to the gala feeling much better than fifteen minutes before. I was a bit more confident, a bit happier. I kind of felt like I owed it to Damon… But as I started mingling with everybody again I completely forgot about Damon. I was almost sure that I was never going to see him again.

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_Later that night…_

The car journey back to our apartment was a bit tedious. Stefan and I sat on the bench of the Mercedes Benz talking about the usual social things that had happened during the party. And after concluding that Klaus had yet again found another blonde bimbo whom he was smooching in the cloak room (Stefan had witnessed it, not me), we ran out of spicy conversation subjects. Once in a while though Matt would join into the conversation, making us both laugh.

Matt was Stefan's driver. And yes, the Salvatores lived in a world where they had their own personal drivers. The embarrassing part was that Stefan and I had known Matt since high-school – but it never seemed to bother neither Matt nor Stefan. But Stefan was a true gentleman – never denigrating Matt or treating him as if he was dirt just because he didn't have money. Which was more or less ok. Matt was quite a funny sweet guy. To be fair, he was the sweetest guy on the planet. He hadn't had much luck in life though – which is why he had ended up working part-time for Stefan whilst he finished his degree in Economics.

"Congratulations again to both of you!" He said when we arrived at our apartment in the Upper East Side. "It is such good news." Both Stefan and I thanked him and then we made our way up to the penthouse by taking the elevator.

The moment we got in the apartment I felt like I was carrying rocks on my shoulders. The pressure of the entire night had taken its toll on me. And I just felt I had to talk to Stefan about it. But I didn't know where to start. So I avoided looking into his eyes for a while and then he realized that something was wrong with me.

"What's up?" He asked me whilst lusciously kissing my neck. He had his hands around my waist pressing my back tightly to his chest.

"We need to talk…" I replied but felt like I was forgetting how to utter words just as he cupped my breast and gently squeezed it.

"You are so beautiful tonight, you know that? A vision in this dress..."

"Really?" I asked feeling as if I was experiencing a drug haze.

"Hmm-mm." He replied continuing to kiss my neck in all the right places.

"And your ring – it looks good on your finger. It suits you so well, my future Mrs. Salvatore." That had done it. All of a sudden I was hearing his father say _Ladies__ and gentlemen, please give a warm welcome to the future Mrs. Elena Salvatore!_ My brain simply stopped.

„Stefan." I said trying to catch his attention.

„Baby, you are just... so sexy." Stefan whispered in my ears and I could feel his erection pushing against the small of my back.

„Stefan, please let go of me." But he wasn't listening – I could feel just how lost in the moment he was. I took his hand away from my breast and turned around so that he could take a better look at me.

But he wasn't listening to me. Instead he simply trapped me in his arms and shoved his tongue down my throat. In another situation I would have succumbed to these feelings but I was too mad at him to let him do this to me. As his grip on me became tighter I suddenly felt myself begging him to let go. And when I asked him for the second time and only got a silent answer I found myself pushing him off me and slapping him in the face. That seemed to wake him up. He was just standing there in front of me in the middle of the living room seeming completely stunned by my gesture. I was shaking but couldn't find it in me to apologize. He had deserved it.

„What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked.

„What's wrong with me?!" I all of a sudden screamed.

„You humiliated me tonight, Stefan..." I almost started crying - but again, because of him, I didn't.

„What are you talking about?" Now he truly seemed confused and innocent. Which made me even angrier.

„You proposed to me in front of the entire company and paparazzi... You let your father announce the proposal and make me come down the stairs as if I was on display... And then you run off with your work mates and leave me alone for most of the night! How the fuck am I supposed to feel?"

„Elena, you knew what my world was like." He said the same lame old excuse that he always uttered.

„Last time I checked people didn't propose to heir girlfriends in front of their bloody work mates." I said trying to contain my anger.

„Please be understanding about this." But him replying crap like this to me was not helping.

„Oh, I'm sorry. Have I not been understanding enough in the past six years?"

„You're acting crazy." He replied and turned his back on me. I turned and grabbed the vase closest to me and threw it towards him. Luckily for both of us it hit the wall instead of him and broke into thousands of pieces.

„Don't you dare walk away from me when I'm talking to you, Stefan! I deserve more than that." He seemed both surprised and scared.

„You do deserve more. But I'm tired right now, Elena. I cannot have this fight at the moment." I felt my blood boiling in my veins.

„You're too tired to fight but you're not too tired to have sex." He gave me a sheepish look. I hated men altogether.

„You make me sick." I said but immediately regretted it. That really seemed to hit a nerve and I could see his face transforming into guilt.

„I thought it was what you wanted." I knew he meant the whole engagement. I wouldn't let him guilt-trap me into stopping though.

„And I thought you knew me better after six years spent together." He seemed to really process what I was saying. Lately it had been harder and harder to talk to him about stuff like this.

"I'm sorry." He finally said realizing what he'd done. He seemed embarrassed but finally admitted:

"I let father talk me into it. Thought it was romantic and grand and something you'd like to share with all of your loved ones. I guess it got a bit out of hand..." A bit was an understatement.

"You're perfectly capable of making decisions without asking your father." I coldly replied.

"I know I am. Again, I'm sorry, Elena." He seemed sincere but I wasn't falling for a simple excuse.

"It's gonna take longer than that to forgive you for this one." He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Does that mean I have to sleep in the guest room again?" I smiled as I heard him saying that.

"No... You can come sleep next to me." He smiled and replied.

"Come on. Let's go to sleep then. I'm exhausted..." Somehow I felt like I'd let him off the hook too easily. Again... But we had gotten engaged tonight. It would have been unfair to make him sleep in the guest room after slapping him and throwing a vase at him.

We made our way to the bedroom and although I was exhausted I couldn't fall asleep no matter how hard I tried. By the time Stefan was snoring I was counting sheep in my desperate attempt to sleep. I couldn't get used to the fact that I would soon be Mrs. Elena Salvatore. The gigantic diamond ring was staring back at me from the nightstand, glowing in the dark room as the light from the sunrise shone straight on it. I felt it was staring at me in such a defiant manner saying just one thing – You are now a property of Stefan Salvatore.

I was obviously going crazy and no matter how much I loved Stefan I couldn't shake that feeling. I thought getting engaged was supposed to be enlightening. So far, it had been just the same as a girl's very first time.

A bit disappointing...

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_**I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. It was so much writing it. I cannot wait to hear your opinions about it! Until next time! :)**_


	3. Chapter 3

**_My dear readers, I hope you enjoy this new chapter! It's entitled after Lady Gaga's song "Judas". Watching TVD lately has been extremely surprising and I cannot wait to see what will happen with Elena and Damon. Hopefully they will get together in the show finally. Pardon any grammar mistakes in this chapter, I could not wait to post as I should be doing revision at the moment - my exams are starting very soon._**

* * *

**Chapter 3 - Judas**

* * *

_"We accept the love we think we deserve."_  
― Stephen Chbosky, _The Perks of Being a Wallflower_

* * *

**ELENA's POV**

9 am on a Monday morning. The most horrible time in a week. The moment you feel like no amount of coffee could wake you up or no amount of kisses from your guy could ever make you willingly get out bed. Yet here I was – together with my fiancé – in the executive meeting room, preparing all the papers for the usual Monday morning meeting. It was a little habit that Stefan and I shared – it might seem boring for one of you guys, but trust me when I say that it was actually fun. And one of the few moments on a Monday when I would get the chance to spend time with Stefan.

We would joke, run around the oval-shaped table and start making out on the leather chairs – because there were zero surveillance cameras and nobody was around to really catch us. After getting complimented on the size of my ring I got out of Stefan's lap and carried on with the preparation.

"No, come back…" Stefan begged making me feel special.

"You know I can't. Don't make this even harder for me. I can barely keep my eyes open." I suddenly felt myself being embraced by Stefan from the back and I succumbed to the feeling of his arms on my thighs.

"Mmmm, I wonder why that is…" He replied in a sexy voice. I blushed at hearing his words as he whispered them in my ear making me drop the files on the table. Last night had been truly crazy – the opposite of usual nights… Stefan was really happy about his promotion and our engagement so he had gone head over heels to make it a special night – dinner, candles, music and dancing in our apartment. And ahem…sex had been out of this world to say the least.

"Stefan…" I said trembling and I could tell he was grinning as he heard my reaction.

"Maybe I could leave you weak in the knees tonight as well. How does that sound?" I smiled and turned around to look him in the eyes. He was so handsome – his big green eyes were lovingly staring at me.

"Perfect." I replied.

"I love you Elena."

"I love you too." I briefly kissed him and went back to arranging the files. I was already running late with everything.

Stefan strolled around the room clearly excited to be here for the first time as an official member of the board. I had been in here before but I wasn't an actual member – simply a delegate from the Marketing department. I was extremely happy for Stefan – I hadn't seen him this happy in a while. All of a sudden I heard the door opening and as I turned around I felt my breath stop in my neck. The blue-eyed stranger from the ship was standing right in front of us…

"Damon…" Stefan said and I could tell he was finding it hard to control himself. For once, anyone in the room could – he seemed startled, but not pleasantly startled. I must say I wasn't surprised – not after what I had heard from Damon a few nights before. But I had never seen Stefan so…scared. And it scared me.

"Hello brother."

I'm sorry – what now? Did he just say **_'brother'_**?!

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked and his voice cracked.

"Well I couldn't miss your first day on the executive board, now could I?" To that, Stefan had no reply apart from an open mouth.

"Your hair is different from when I last saw you." Damon said and sat down on one of the chair, with his feet high up on the table and flicking through one of the files that I had earlier organized.

"Stefan?" I couldn't help but ask – and for the first time Damon acknowledged me. His eyes slightly changed upon looking at me and I couldn't help but frown. I was confused to say the least.

"It's nice to see you again Elena." Damon sincerely said and I could notice a small smile on his lips. I didn't know if I could say the same.

I was not however expecting to see Stefan's eyes boggling out of their sockets at hearing Damon's words. He incredulously bored into my eyes and I felt incredibly embarrassed by this whole situation. I couldn't hold his stare which only made him angrier. He chose to ignore the fact that I knew this Damon character.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan demanded.

"I missed my little brother." Damon replied. I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. Again, Stefan didn't reply to this – but he seemed to get angrier by the second.

Again, he had said "Brother" as if to emphasize that he was indeed his brother… But no – that was impossible! It just couldn't be…

"Fine. I see that you're not happy to see me at all. So I'll just go and say hi to father. I reckon he wouldn't like it if I waited until everybody was present." Stefan gently nodded and Damon slowly got up the chair in an arrogant manner. When he reached Stefan's side he turned to look him in the eye and said.

"Plus, given that Elena apparently knows nothing about me – I bet you have some explaining to do." Bright red smoke seemed to be coming out of Stefan's ears.

"Good luck." Damon added patting Stefan on the shoulder. With that he silently left the room throwing me one last look. His big light-blue eyes seemed apologetic but I wasn't sure.

As the door closed silence fell between Stefan and me. I was more than surprised. I was shocked.

"What the hell is going on?" I said not even sure about my feelings. Stefan turned towards me and just shook his head.

"I don't know." Was he kidding me?

"Stefan, who is that man?"

"My brother." That hit a nerve. Before I could reply his look suddenly changed and I was being looked at in a very vengeful way. I had never seen Stefan acting like this.

"Why did Damon say _"Nice to see you again_"?" My breath stopped in my chest. I had no decent explanation. I knew I had to tell the truth. But it just wouldn't come out for some reason.

Stefan suddenly plunged towards me violently grabbing my wrists and staring at me.

"How do you know him, Elena?" I couldn't help but wince as his grip became tighter and tighter.

"Stefan, you're hurting me." I said and could feel tears gathering in my eyes.

"Tell me how you met him." He demanded and shook my body for a brief second.

"We met at the gala." I managed to reply through gritted teeth and he finally let go of me.

"I can't believe this is happening…" He said and started going up and down the room like a mad man.

"He can't be back… I don't understand why…" He said and then he looked at me.

"Elena…" He gently said realizing what he had done but as soon as he took a step towards me I jumped back in horror.

"Don't touch me!" I shouted. That made him stop in his tracks.

"I'm so sorry. I…can't believe I just did that." He said fervently shaking his head. I had never seen Stefan acting this crazy in all of the 6 years I'd known him.

"You have a brother." I said in a hollow voice. He just nodded and instantly felt guilty and ashamed.

"Elena…"

"I cannot believe that you never told me this…"

"Please, let me explain."

"Explain what, Stefan? We've known each other for years and you never even mentioned Damon – not once! What the hell is there to explain? You clearly don't trust me enough to share basic things like having a brother."

"Elena, it's not that simple…"

"To sure as hell it isn't!" I shouted back anger overwhelming me. "I feel so…humiliated. I forgave you for proposing to me in front of the entire company but… This…" I managed to say before weeping "I cannot forgive you for this." I simply said.

"Baby, please, you don't know even half of it…" Stefan said and ran to me in a heartbeat. He didn't dare touch me though. He seemed to be hurting horribly but then again so was I.

"How dare you? After doing this to me?" I said showing him my bruised wrists. More shame filled his being – I could see the transformation.

"Please…Let me take care of you." He managed to say. Despite my heart telling me to let him help me I instead turned around and left the room as fast as I could without people starring at me on the hallway. My pride was still intact.

* * *

**_10 minutes later.._**

I was in the washroom with my wrists underneath the tap, ice-cold water pouring on them and soothing them. My head was pounding and I was repressing tears as hard as I could. I was too shocked to accept that Stefan had just done this to me. It was unimaginable. I half-understood him – Damon coming back seemed to be an immense shock for him but then again, who cared? He hadn't told me that he had a brother. That was…unacceptable. Simply unacceptable…

The water kept pouring slowly washing off my anger and frustration as well. The bathroom door suddenly opened and, knowing my luck, I feared that Rebekah would come in. But instead I saw Caroline's smile appear in the doorway and I instantly relaxed.

"Elena!" She squeaked upon seeing me.

"Hi, Care…" I replied.

"What happened?" She asked in a sympathetic tone. I probably seemed like a wreck.

"Stefan happened."

"Oh no… don't tell me you're getting cold feet!" I rolled my eyes.

"No, Care… it's just…it's so damn complicated." She seemed worried.

"Do you feel like talking?" I shook my head in response.

"Ok, well…I'm sure whatever is going on between you guys, you'll manage to sort it out." I gave a fake smile.

"What are those?!" Caroline's eyes became as big as onions when she saw my red wrists. My cheeks must have gone pink and I struggled for words.

"Caroline, it's not what you think…" But I couldn't think of anything to say. Caroline doubtfully eyed me as she was thinking about something. And then that something clicked in her mind.

"No!" She said eyeing me from head to toe.

"What?"

"Someone used that website that I sent you for Valentine's." She grinned and shot me a respectful glance.

"What website?"

"Oh don't play dumb. The one with the sex toys." I felt like I could kill her but I was too happy that she had saved my ass. As she saw my embarrassed face her grin became bigger.

"Ooooh, someone likes it rough, doesn't she?"

"CAROLINE!" I involuntarily squealed. I'm not sure if I preferred her to think this than the actual truth. In earnest, I was a bit of a prude.

"Our sweet innocent Elena is officially **dirty!**" She sang the words as if they were the highlight of the day.

"Caroline, please stop." I said covering my eyes in despair.

"Oh, relax, silly. I'm happy that you and Stefan have got it going on."

"Sometimes I wonder why I'm still friends with you." She faked a pout.

"Because I give you tips on all the shopping venues."

"Yeah, probably…" Caroline paused for a second eyeing me from head to toe yet again and she had a devilish expression on her face.

"What?!" I asked in exasperation.

"You didn't come up with the handcuffs, did you?" I instantly panicked as I wondered whether she had realized the truth. I tried my best poker face.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Please! It's so obvious. You're way too pure to have done this willingly." She said pointing towards my wrists. "It's all Stefan's fault – he made you wear them didn't he?" I was prepared to decide against it when I realized I didn't have to.

"Yeah…" I replied half-smiling. "He likes doing that…"

"Ugh, I always thought he was downright nice. But don't worry sweetie, men are like that – especially after they give you expensive things. And that engagement ring of yours… well, let's just say you're gonna have to put up with similar things in the future."

I really hope I wouldn't. Not with violence at least. Sex stuff – I was fine with them, I was used to guys doing that. But inflicting physical pain was not my idea of _crap-that-a-girlfriend-should-take_. It was more on the lines of _walk-away-as-soon-as-you-can-before-it-gets-worse_. But I knew it wouldn't get worse. It was the first and last time it had happened. I would make sure of that... Caroline's dreamy voice pulled me back to reality.

"I would've never pictured Stefan being such a dirty guy. He seems, oh, I don't know… so unadventurous and…boring." She replied gazing in the distance. I kept silent as I felt a mild headache creeping up on me.

"I must be seriously losing my touch when it comes to guys. Oh no! Does that normally happen when you hit 25?" I rolled my eyes in exasperation seeing her panicked face.

"No, Caroline. Being wrong about one guy doesn't mean you're losing your touch, ok? Now can we go work? I need to prepare for the 10 a.m. meeting." I said sulking on the inside at the thought of being in the same room with Stefan right now.

"Oh, honey… You really need to start taking those Advil pills I gave you."

_Please, kill me now!_

**DAMON's POV**

I felt surprisingly serene and calm after my encounter with Stefan. Somehow, over all these years I thought that our first encounter would affect me much more than this. Turns out it didn't. Instead it affected him more. I wasn't surprised though, not after the way I had left New York seven years ago. I was a fool for thinking even for a second that he had forgotten our past, or at least forgiven me for all the things I had done.

I had forgiven him. But that was probably just because I had lived far away from NY and had time to think – lots of it. My father… he was a completely different issue. Nothing to do with Stefan.

As I slowly walked towards my father's office I couldn't help but remember Elena's face. She looked confused upon seeing me here. But most of all shocked. I simply couldn't comprehend my brother's stupidity. Not telling his fiancé that I even existed was a next level mistake. From what I had read in the newspapers over the years I knew all about their relationship. They seemed closed – she probably loved him more than he loved her. She must have – to stay with him for so many years especially since she originated from the working class. Initially I had considered her a gold-digger like all the other women lurking around Stefan and myself. But after seeing her behaviour last night at the gala and then after our conversation on the boat I realized she wasn't anything like Rebekah.

I couldn't help but feel slightly guilty for how I had announced that I knew Elena from before. Stefan seemed furious. But she seemed even angrier, I'll give you that. I honestly couldn't blame her. Because Stefan had it coming… Who knows what lies he had told her about our family. That was the sole reason I didn't feel too guilty for my earlier bombshell. It wasn't my place to interfere with their relationship but sooner or later she was bound to find out.

Especially since I was planning to stick around for a while.

"Greetings father." I couldn't help my sarcasm get in the way.

"Damon?!" He incredulously asked. "Is that really you?" He asked recklessly taking his glasses off and putting them on his desk. I loved every second of my father's reaction. The doubt in his eyes, the confusion on his face – the horror upon realizing it was actually me…

God…I was enjoying this way too much.

"What's the matter father? You look like you just saw a ghost." The satisfaction in my soul was too much for me to bear – I knew I sounded cocky but I couldn't help it.

Father quickly put his mask on and for a second I didn't know what to expect of him.

"It_ is_ you…" He gently said and then shook his head in disbelief.

"Are you surprised that I came back?" I asked feeling bitterness fill my being.

"Can you blame me?" He asked clearly trying hard not to lash out at me.

I couldn't blame him… Over the years he had tried contacting me repeatedly. Every week I would get an e-mail from him, or call on my old phone. For seven years in a row I had never returned any email or call from him.

"No." I replied and I could feel my eyes boring into his, waiting for a reaction – for an apology, or anything related.

"Well, I see the place hasn't changed one bit." I said walking around the office and looking at his pictures laid on all of the bookshelves.

"Well, maybe apart from a few more photos illustrating your social conquers."

"Damon…" He said and I could tell he was getting slightly annoyed with my behaviour. He had always considered me smug and immature.

"Oh, I see you met president Obama." I said and showed him the photo with a fake grin. "Now that's going places, father…" Again, I could tell he was refraining from shouting. I put the frame back in place and positioned myself right in front of his desk.

"Why are you back?" He finally asked after a long pause, his eyebrows furrowed – just like I remembered him.

Now this was going to be fun...

"Well, to be honest, I got bored of Rome… Not as interesting as New York in terms of business as one might think. Plus, did you know that too much sunshine is not good for you?"

"Are you making fun of me, young man?" He asked but not in the same threatening tone that he used to take with me years ago. Probably because I was now taller and stronger than him...

"Actually, father, I'm here because I want to come back."

"Come back where?" He asked seeming slightly scared.

"To the company of course… Where did you think?" He replied in a careful tone.

"If I remember correctly, Damon…The last time we saw each other you specifically told me that you couldn't care less about the firm even if it financially collapsed. I remember because you left when I needed you the most." This was my turn to play it up.

"I see you haven't forgotten."

"Kind of hard to forget, don't you think?" Oh boy…

"Ok…fine, I'll take responsibility for what I've done. But I still want to work for you." I firmly said.

"Work for me?" My father asked and briefly grinned. "You must be joking."

"You know I wouldn't joke about something like this. Especially after everything that's happened. I want to come back and be your right hand – just like you wanted me to be seven years ago. Obviously I wouldn't be starting right at the top. But give me a position on the committee board and I will not fail you. That is my promise." My father kept getting surprised by my words. He leaned back on his leather chair and studied me like an eagle studies its prey.

"Now why would someone who has a head position at Banca D'Italia in Rome want to come back here as a simple employee? What with the popularity you probably acquired in Rome – being that you're of Italian descent as well. Tell me, Damon, why do you actually want to come back here?" I replied in a strong but humble tone.

"Let's just say that I finally realized where my loyalty lies." My father looked at me suspiciously.

"It took me a while to understand but now I do." I carried on. "And after such a long time, I now have the necessary experience to fully help you with whatever you need to be done here. I know we've had our differences in the past but it was a difficult time for both of us – our family was falling apart and the firm was falling apart. You can't blame me for leaving back then…" My father faintly nodded and for once after all these years he finally agreed that I hadn't done the most horrible and unfounded thing on earth.

He slowly got out of his seat and then came towards me knowing that I wouldn't hurt him. Again he seemed reluctant but finally, with much hesitation he awkwardly hugged me. I was half-surprised, half-angry. But I involuntarily hugged him back. He rapidly released me and put his arms on my shoulders.

"Look at you all grown up." He said and I was shocked to see tears in his eyes.

"It's been too long, Damon…" He said and gave me a genuine smile. "I can't believe I haven't seen your face in seven years. You've changed so much."

"So have you father." I politely replied ignoring his moment of weakness – he always hated when we showed affection towards him. He had always been so different to our mother.

"Of course I'll take you back. Hell, this company needs you – more than ever."

"I doubt that. You're doing fantastically well – you're the first bank in the States."

"Yes, that is true. But this year is going to be particularly harder than usual – I have a lead that the competing bank recently acquired highly experienced personnel because of the loss inflicted by our company. So we need to prepare better than ever. After all, we have a reputation to uphold."

"Oh yes, I completely agree father." I knew how he liked to be talked to – complimented and all that.

"Welcome back, son." Father said and for a split-second I realized I had missed him. No matter how much crap had happened between us, I had actually missed him – and that was saying something. I quickly repressed that feeling though – the one that had made me lose so many things over the years. I knew better than to let myself be weak. I was here to take back what was rightfully mine and I was not going to stop no matter what.

Well, so far so good…

**ELENA's POV**

"I cannot find the files for the photo shooting." Rebekah shouted towards me – 15 minutes before the beginning of the meeting I might add.

"Well you're gonna have to find them. I cannot go into that meeting without them." I replied panicking.

"I'd so much like to see you try though." She replied giving me her characteristic smirk.

"Don't start with me, Rebekah – not today."

"Well, how lucky some of us are to have fiancés in charge of the company. Maybe I should get one of those. So that I don't have to do the bottom-line work. You know, printing hundreds of files, organizing them and then when you misplace them I have to search for them so that your head doesn't get chopped off by Giuseppe."

You might have been wondering why I put up with her in the first place. Well, if you didn't realize before, Rebekah Michaelson was the Klaus's sister and the daughter of Michael Michaelson, one of Giuseppe Salvatore's closest friends. So more or less Giuseppe had to hire Rebekah when she graduated her marketing degree at Columbia. And guess where she landed – right in our office. She had never fully stopped hating me for the fact that I came here two years after she started working and was directly put head of the office. I couldn't blame her – I knew I didn't deserve it. But then again I did not deserve all of the crap she made me go through day after day. I couldn't do anything about it though because she had her dad supporting her in this job. Oh well…

"I'm hearing this…" I said mimicking a chattering mouth with my hand "But I wanna hear this." And I mimicked a closed mouth.

I got no reply from Rebekah but I was sure she was cursing me for the whole of eternity. I went back to my office and prayed to God that Damon wouldn't come to the meeting as well. I could only imagine what disaster awaited us all if he was to be present there. Seeing him earlier had actually touched me – in a very uncomfortable way. And if just his presence had such a violent effect on Stefan I didn't want to imagine him being a part of Stefan's life. Or mine for that matter. The other night on the ship he had seemed nice and humble. This morning had left me with the impression that Damon Salvatore was actually an arrogant ass like the rest of the employees at the company. More on the same lines as Rebekah.

I had to admit – he was beautiful and mysterious; the kind of look that the undercover hero in a movie has. The kind of gorgeous man that girls would die to have a one-night-stand with... But the way he had appeared out of nowhere in that room this morning left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

I quickly grabbed a long-sleeved sweater – lucky that I had left it at the office a few days ago – and dressed it. After all, I couldn't go into the meeting with bright-red wrists. People would think the same thing as Caroline….

14 minutes later after Rebekah finally bothered to give me the files, I made my way to the meeting room just in time to take a seat as far away from Stefan as possible just as Giuseppe was entering the room himself. Everybody was rounded at the table as usual: Alaric Saltzman, Richard and Tyler Lockwood, Michael Michaelson, Klaus Michaelson, Logan Fell, Rudy Hopkins (Bonnie's father) and Liz Forbes (Caroline's mother) – the only other woman on the committee apart from me.

It seemed like it was going to be a quiet meeting when all of a sudden Giuseppe stood in front of everybody and started his speech.

"Dear colleagues, I have an announcement for all of you. Something that most of you probably haven't been aware of. This morning I had the surprise of my life." Oh no…

"You all probably remember my son Damon." Oh God…

"He has been out of our lives for quite a while but this morning he told me that he has come back to help with the company, to resume his position on the board of directors – the one I had arranged for him seven years ago." Although I hated Stefan right now, I couldn't help but notice his reaction. I must say, he did not seem well. Frustration, humiliation – it was all written on his face. Yet he kept quiet about it. All the others in the room seemed baffled. Richard and Logan were outraged, Tyler and Klaus (about the same age as Damon seemed excited) whilst Alaric and Liz seemed genuinely happy to hear the news. Rudy and Michael seemed indifferent.

"I know this may come as a shock to most of you but I assure you that Damon is well qualified to pick up where he left. He has been working for Banca D'Italia in Rome for the past years as he always wanted to gain his experience and prove his value away from his father's protective wing." The entire board grinned at this line. Giuseppe was a charismatic leader – sneaky and manipulative as well.

"And now that he has reached his goal he is coming back to our company in a time where we need all the help we can get to secure our number 1 rank in the US. Without further ado, please all welcome Damon." Giuseppe said and Damon made his way inside the room looking more arrogant and smug than this morning. I had to hand it to the bastard though – he did look professional and trustworthy in his business suit and with his gel-arranged hair.

"Good morning, everybody. It is…" Damon stopped for a split second seeming truly touched. "…lovely to see you all again. My old friends…" He actually seemed honest.

"It is so good to be back. I must say, it hasn't been easy in the past years but as my dad said it's been an opportunity to develop my skills and prepare for the challenging domain that is financing in the States. I really hope that we can get along smoothly for the benefit of the company. I cannot wait to work alongside you people and learn from the best."

Everybody started applauding at the end of Damon's short speech. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Stefan though. This was supposed to be his first day on the executive board – his moment to shine, something he had waited for months in a row since he first started working for his dad. And instead of getting one day to enjoy it, in came Damon stealing his thunder. Everybody stood up to congratulate Damon on his return – even the people that were clearly not happy to see the board room be assaulted by yet another Salvatore member. After all, they all had interests in maintaining supremacy in the company. Realistically though there was nothing they could do.

From the looks of it, Damon was here to stay…

**STEFAN's POV**

I ran after Damon the moment he exited the room after the meeting was over. I couldn't contain my fury and frustrations any longer. The worst thing was that I was supposed

"What was that all about?" I demanded.

"Now, Stefan…" He replied feigning innocence.

"Oh no, don't you _now, Stefan_ me, Damon. What are you doing?!"

"Well, I'm walking to my new office." He explained as if I was mentally retarded. "If you want to join, you are more than welcome."

"I'm tired of these games, Damon… Just tell me why you're here. This isn't even your home anymore." I felt desperate. I couldn't simply accept that he was coming back after so many years. It didn't feel right.

"Correction, brother. New York has always been my home… I just needed 7 years to realize that." He seemed sincere so I backed down.

"That makes no sense. You voluntarily left."

"Well, now I'm back." He nonchalantly replied annoying me even more.

"Damon, please tell me everything that father said in the meeting was bullshit."

"Stefan, you know father taught us never to tell lies." He replied making me feel like his younger brother.

"I'm serious, Damon."

"So am I Stefan. Why are you so worked up about anyway? I mean…It's good to be home. I think I am going to stay for a while."

"That is…fantastic news." I managed to reply through gritted teeth.

"Plus, this company seems to be in need of a wake-up call, don't you think?" He said and I saw him waving to April who unwillingly but shyly waved back. He then pushed the button for the elevator.

"What are you up to!?" I couldn't help but ask and I regretted it.

"That's for me to know and for you to… Dot, dot, dot." He added cunningly grinning. He then stepped into the elevator and said:

"Give Elena my best." And then the elevator doors shut and I was left in the middle of the hallway.

Feeling like the stupidest person on Earth…

**ELENA's POV**

It was 6:30 pm and yet again I had stayed over the normal work schedule. I had accessed a website that Caroline recommended for my weekly shopping. Throughout the day, due to the pressure of it all, I had kept clicking on many items that I fancied and right now my basket had about 60 items. Dresses, tops, trousers, skirts, shoes, lingerie, coats, accessories, even three bathing suits…. You could always tell how annoyed I was at something by checking the number of items in my shopping basket. I won't even go into the details of how expensive everything cost.

Everybody in the office had left – I was the only sucker who had to stay. This is the biggest perk of being the head of a department – slaving for the company until the office becomes your home. So when Stefan came in the office, as I knew he would, I just had to face him on my own and face whatever he had to say. Because I was lucky enough to be alone...

"Hi…" He said and I gave him a look that made him realize I was nowhere near to forgiving him.

"Elena, I am so sorry about today."

"You don't say…" I sarcastically replied.

"Please don't be like that. I've had to put up with a sarcastic Damon for eight hours straight … I can't deal with another sarcastic person today."

"Well I can't deal with another liar." I knew that had struck home base.

"Elena, let me explain."

"Why should I? Especially after what you've done to me..."

"I was such a moron. I just snapped upon seeing Damon. You have to understand, it's shocking to see your brother after seven years…"

"It must be. A brother I didn't even know existed."

"You have to understand – father and I had a reason to keep quiet about him."

"I'm sure you did…"

"Damon simply left both us. He ran off after our mother died, moved to Europe and swore he would never come back. He hated us and he loathed this lifestyle. We never thought we would see him again. My father was so disappointed in him that he decided anyone who dared to utter his name in the company would get sacked. The same went for the press… He made us all forget him. And so we did – pretended like he never existed in the first place… You have to believe me, Elena. I would've told you had I known he was coming back."

"You don't understand Stefan. You should have told me about him either way... Having a horrible past with him does not acquit you of telling me the truth. It is unacceptable to do that to me. I'm your fiancé for God's sake. When were you planning on telling me?"

His silence told me everything.

"Very impressive, I must say."

"Elena, look…" He went on but I shut him out, turned my head to the computer, and pressed enter placing my order. I felt no satisfaction other than knowing he would wake up with a humongous debt in his account. "You're being unreasonable, just talk to me." That last sentence made me red with fury.

"You have got to be kidding me." I said and Stefan instantly knew he had done it.

"I'm being unreasonable?" I asked but received no reply. "Fine…" I said, got my coat and purse and sprinted out of the office. Stefan came running after me.

"Elena, wait!" Stefan shouted.

"Oh yes…" I replied turning around.

"Don't forget this." I replied throwing his credit card right in his chest. "After all, this is the most important thing for you – money..."

30 minutes later I was in front of my mum's doorstep. I reluctantly knocked on the door and pulled my coat tighter around me. It was quite windy that night. I could hear two voices as the light in the hallway went on. My aunt Jenna was probably there as well.

"Elena!" My mum replied seeming confused and worried as she looked at me.

"What happened, honey?" She asked and I instantly started crying. Uncontrollable sobs…

Jenna appeared behind mum and they – my eternal female saviors – were giving me such looks that I simply felt the need to bury myself in both their arms. And cry all the tears that I had repressed throughout the day.

* * *

**_I really hope you enjoyed chapter 3! Please feel free to express your opinions, likes/dislikes and requests for this story. Until next time! :)_**


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